I came to say goodbye by Caroline Overington

It was a crime that shocked the world.

The CCTV footage shows a young woman pushing through the hospital doors.

She walks into the nursery, picks up a baby and places her carefully in a shopping bag.

She walks out to the car park, towards an old Ford Corolla. For a moment, she holds the child gently against her breast and, with her eyes closed, she smells her.

Then she clips the baby into the car, gets in and drives off. This is where the footage ends.

What happens next will leave a mother devastated, and a little boy adrift in a world he will never understand.

I finished this book last night with tears in my eyes.  Having read the back of the book, I was expecting an action packed thrill ride, but it isn't like that, it's a slow tale through the history of a family which eventually culminates in a tragedy.  It is a very moving storyline though, it just takes time to build.

The book begins with a very short prologue describing a woman walking into a hospital at 4am, and taking a baby.  Part One is then written by a man, Med Atley, father to three children who describes his marriage, bringing up his children and the past slowly making his way forward in to the present.  Part Two is written by one of Med's daughters, Kat, as she picks up a specific part of the tale before returning to Med.  The entire book is written as a letter from Med and Kat to a Court judge.  It isn't apparent from the start what Court case is happening, but it is clearly something to do with the kidnapped baby. 

Finally, the book ends with a letter written to the judge by a lady we haven't met before.

I personally really liked the style it was written in, it was very personable and I thought it was unique.  It perhaps wasn't as gripping as I'd imagined or hoped for, and there were some flaws in the story but it was generally captivating and moving.

I came to say goodbye is released on 26 September.

Thank you to Citizen Sigmund of Random House for the review copy!